America’s Favorite Teacher: Mr. Meyerowitz

As many of you may know, one of our teachers at BISV is running in America’s Favorite Teacher Competition. The one and only Mr. Meyerowitz has successfully captured the favor of many of our students; now the BISV community must come together to help him capture all of America. 

How Does Voting Work? 

The multiple rounds from the Group Phase to the Finals put teachers in various matches where spectators vote for their favorites (you can vote using the QR code above). Each day before 7 pm, you can authenticate through Facebook to have a free vote every 24 hours. Furthermore, to show your extra support, you can purchase votes at a rate of 1 vote/dollar. The money you put into voting will then be donated to Bill Nye’s Planetary Society, thus benefiting both Mr. Meyerowitz and space exploration.  

After each round, the votes reset, which is why we must establish a larger and more stable voting base. According to Mr. Meyerowitz’s calculations, there are around 800 students, around 1,600 parents, 800 alumni, 100 staff, and around another 100 miscellaneous family members that can vote once a day (that’s 3,400 votes per day!). Though achieving this astounding total is a little far-fetched, if we can achieve a high level of coordination, we can easily achieve thousands of votes per day. Of course, voters don’t have to be associated directly with BISV or any other school; any one can vote every day until Mr. Meyerowitz wins or loses.

Vivian C.: Why should people vote? 

Mr. Meyerowitz: Anyone can vote every 24 hours or purchase blocks of votes; these are tax-deductible donations, and all proceeds benefit Bill Nye’s Planetary Society, an educational organization focused on space exploration. Since many teachers in America have large social media followings, especially those who generate a lot of content, our students, parents, and community must assist me in this competition by voting and voting often, however undemocratic that might sound. Bear in mind that this isn’t a democratic election per se; it’s about influence, reach, and getting voters to the polls day after day, round after round.

Vivian C.:How do you plan to take on this competition?

Mr. Meyerowitz: There are several rounds, and the votes reset each time. In the first round or the Group Round, I’m planning to lean heavily on my own students and the BISV community. I’m also creating a YouTube series called “Passing Period” to introduce my teaching style to students at BISV and beyond who haven’t yet had me as their teacher. If we get first place in the Group Round, we’ll move on to the Quarterfinals, and I’ll look to the BASIS Independent Network for their votes and support. Top candidates in that round go to the Semis, at which point I’d humbly look to support from the Spring Network of which the BASIS Independent Schools are part. Finally, if we get to the finals, I’ll be writing to every celebrity, especially every Bay Area celebrity, and media outlet that I can to put BISV on the map. Or at least I’ll become the Bay Area’s most annoying self-promoter in the process.

What is this Competition? 

America’s Favorite Teacher is a competition that grants one teacher the title of “America’s Favorite Teacher” based on a big, online popularity contest. The goal of this contest is to find America’s favorite teacher as well as to celebrate teachers who “change the world.” Students and Parents will vote for their favorite teacher to help them advance through elimination rounds, from quarterfinals to semifinals. In the end, the winner of this competition will get $25,000, a trip for two to Hawaii, a feature by Reader’s Digest Magazine, and an assembly with Bill Nye. 

As a student of Mr. Meyerowitz’s CoPoco class, I can safely say that he has changed or built on the way that we view history. For example, in my personal experience, my understanding of colonialism has broadened in terms of all the different types of countries affected by it, as well as the various forms of colonialism. Although the monetary benefits are obvious, this competition would also help broaden BISV’s appeal beyond its traditional STEM focus. 

Vivian C.: What attracted you to this competition?

Mr. Meyerowitz: I heard about this competition last year and thought, “That’s absurd! How can one person be America’s favorite?” This year, I thought, “If any school has earned the right to America’s Favorite Teacher, it’s BISV. So, I tossed my hat in the ring. Our students have the best teachers in America; it’s high time that we get the acclaimed title of ‘America’s Favorite Teacher.’” 

Vivian C.: What does the winner get?Mr. Meyerowitz: The winner will get $25,000, which I’ll donate to BISV to build a library or at least start our first serious library collection. After all, my success depends on the votes of our BISV Bobcats. We’ll also receive a feature in Reader’s Digest as well as an assembly with Bill Nye, the Science Guy. Finally, the winner earns two tickets to Hawaii. After a national election like this one, every candidate (and their spouse) has earned a trip to Hawaii.

How does this Benefit You?

Yes. You. Firstly, increasing Mr. Meyerowitz’s popularity also increases the school’s popularity. Furthermore, BISV is quite well known for its STEM curriculum, but not much is said about the humanities. Despite this, you’ve still taken at least one humanities class every year that you’ve been at this school. Why? Because the humanities are critical to our understanding of humans who live in the world and interact with science and technology. Through this competition, we can show that BISV is also quite versed in not just STEM but also in the humanities. 

Along with the popularity, there are the obvious prizes that come from winning. One of which is a visit from Bill Nye, the Science Guy. Many of us grew up watching his videos and chanting “Bill! Bill! Bill!.” But if Mr. Meyerowitz wins, we’ll all be able to transfer the online image of him to the Science Guy himself. An additional bonus is the 25k prize money that Mr. Meyerowitz will use to vastly expand our current library. 

Mr. Meyerowitz

To let you know a little more about who you’re voting for, BISV’s Quill has interviewed Mr. Meyerowitz. Some answers were sprinkled in previous sections, but this section will go into a little more on Mr. Meyerowitz’s background. Such as his subject expertise, his plans, and how some of his own teachers have influenced him. 

Vivian C.: What motivated you to become a teacher?

Mr. Meyerowitz: I had some excellent teachers in high school who heard that I performed in an improv comedy troupe. They came to watch me regularly and encouraged me to blend my love for comedy and performance with my interest in the Humanities.

Vivian C.: What subjects have you taught, teach, and plan on teaching?

Mr. Meyerowitz: I’m currently teaching Colonial and Post-Colonial History (CoPoco…PoCoPoco if you add the Post-AP part), Literary Theory and Criticism, and a Capstone called Existentialism and the Absurd. Like most faculty at BISV, I have taught the full range of English and History classes at the middle school and high school level.

Vivian C.: Is your next goal to become the world’s favorite teacher? 

Mr. Meyerowitz: Haha! The idea of America’s favorite teacher is silly enough, considering that I’ve taught some infinitesimally small percentage of all Americans as it is. So, I’d stick with the national name and leverage it to get more BISV students interested in the Humanities, in post-AP courses, and in higher-level scholarship. The tyranny of STEM ruling the Bay Area must be confronted! Make way for the arts and letters!

Now that you know more about competition and Mr. Meyerowitz himself, go vote! Voting doesn’t take long and can be done in the ten minutes you have for homeroom every day. Get your parents to vote, I’m sure they’d be glad to offer you a chance at a better library. They can have their friends and colleagues vote, who can have their friends and colleagues vote, and so on until we have all the votes! In fact, set yourself a reminder and make it part of your daily routine! It might help you transition to the time in your life when you start relying on Google Calendar.